Communication University of China

[moderntime]

I'm currently studying Chinese at the Communication University of China (Chuan Mei Da Xue 传媒大学） and these are my impressions so far.

Communication University is located two stops out on the Batong line in the Southeast of Beijing, so for most people it's a bit far and nowhere near Wudaokou if that is what you are looking for.

For the 2008-2009 year, the program costs were 8300 RMB for a semester or 15,800 RMB a year, plus a 400 RMB registration fee and an insurance fee that is either 300 RMB for the semester or 600 RMB for the year. There is also the cost of the books and tapes, which is about 200 RMB per semester.

The program has five levels and generally one level takes one semester to complete.

Before classes began, we took a placement test which sorted us out into five different levels. There is a written test for reading and writing, then an oral interview with a teacher that tests speaking and listening. There is the option to transfer out of your class if you feel that it is the wrong level for you.

Classes run from 8:00 - 9:50 am with a ten minute break, and then 10:10 am to 12:00 pm with another ten minute break. There's also optional courses, including HSK classes, tai chi, and pronunciation courses, but they need to have a minimum amount of people sign up before the classes will start.

The program has an interesting mix of people from all over, with the advantage of not having too many native English speakers and lots of Koreans and Europeans, so our common language is Mandarin. There are about 12 people in my class and from what I can tell there's never more than 15 people in any class; it seems like they separate the classes out if there are too many people placed into one level. I have classes in general Mandarin, speaking, reading and listening, with writing being part of the general Mandarin course.

The classrooms have decent facilities--heat in the winter and AV system in some of the classrooms. Plus, there's a 1 RMB coffee machine in the office that is everyone's favourite. Squat toilets though.

One definite advantage of this university is that it's a media university, so there is a very lively environment with students filming on weekends and student music television broadcasts.

I'll summarize the pros and cons:

Pros:

- Excellent teaching and administrative structure, and given my general experiences with Chinese universities this is a very organized program

- Good mix of students from all over, and the teachers are experienced enough so that they can address specific issues regarding students from certain countries.

- The textbooks are selected so that they complement and reinforce structures and vocabulary in different books. To me this is quite impressive, because even though I have different books from different series, I can retain vocabulary at a higher pace because a phrase learned in one book will turn up in another.

- The teachers are very patient and will take the time to really clarify points and grammar if the class as a whole is not understanding it, but will also move it along if it's only one student who is unable to grasp it.

- The teachers are very experienced and well-trained; for instance, in an optional pronunciation course that I am taking, the teachers have been trained through the university's television broadcasting program, which if I remember correctly is where many future CCTV anchors are also trained.

- The school is very pro-active about organizing trips and activities for students

- Free weekly tutoring sessions are offered with graduate students who are studying to become Chinese teachers to foreigners.

- The program also offers free optional classes on Thursday afternoons, covering different topics. So far popular Chinese expressions and Chinese history have been covered.

Cons:

- Teachers sometimes use English to define words quickly, although I see the point I would prefer for it to be completely in Chinese.

- Lack of opportunities to practice actually speaking Chinese during the basic program, as even the oral Chinese class is mostly focused on grammar. This is something that they are clearly trying to address because they have just organized a Chinese corner.

- Lack of pronunciation correction during class.

- The placement exam seems to be only a suggestion, because certainly within the classes themselves there is a very wide variety of levels. This can either be frustrating or helpful, depending on your own learning curve.

- Although in general I like the way that the classes are taught, it's definitely in the Chinese way of sitting and listening to your teacher talk while you ask questions. If your preference is for more group or interactive work, then it can be frustrating.

- Potentially embarassing moments when everyone's attendance record is posted on the bulletin board!

I myself do not have much contact with local students at the school, but I'm also in a slightly different position than other foreign students in that I work part-time and live off-campus, so I can't particularly comment here.

I also can't comment on the food on campus because I haven't bothered with getting a cafeteria card, but the university is surrounded by loads of tasty street food stands and cheap restaurants.

My Chinese has improved by leaps and bounds since starting the program two months ago, and since taking the pronunciation class I'm painfully aware of what it is in my accent that gives away my foreigness, so all in all I'm very satisfied.

The website for the university is here: http://www.cuc.edu.cn/en/index_en.htm

The website (in English, Chinese, Japanese and Korean) for the program:

http://fad.cuc.edu.cn/study/mandarin/ (although oddly enough it is down right now)

[roddy]

Thanks for taking the time to do the write-up, glad you're enjoying it

Not sure I'd even heard of that university before, how did you end up studying there?

[moderntime]

A friend of mine recommended it on account of two reasons: 1) the location, we live only two subway stops away from the university, so commuting to Wudaokou for 8 am classes was out of the question and 2) the price! The program is cheaper than many others by a few thousand RMB.

[BJ220051]

This uni is a very good university! It seems it grows out of Beijing Broadcasting Institute , which cultivates broadcasters or anchors for CCTV or provincial TV station. But, I am not sure about teaching foreigners.

[Jasarn]

So I'll probably be attending this University in 2010 to learn Chinese, and this is the only thread I found on it. Rather than creating a new one I thought I'd bump it, does anyone else have any other input on this place or know much about it? Or possibly going to it next year?

The reason I chose this over somewhere like BLCU is that I'm currently doing an advanced diploma that is related to media, and also my dad lives quite close to this university so I thought that would be a bonus too.

Thanks

[Mcnubn]

I was at this university for 2 semesters (september 2010~july 2011) and I would not recommend this university to my worst enemy.

The teaching quality was generally poor at the lower levels. Out of the 8 teachers I had, I would say 2 were actually decent, however the other classes held by the other 6 were mostly a waste of time. Also if you do happen to have classmates that have experience with the hanzi (e.g. east asian students), expect the teacher to go at their pace with little attention paid to those used to roman characters -,- Also many of the teachers in the lower classes have little to no experience teaching foreigners and some of the speaking classes were held by current students. Oh and when reciting conversations from the textbook, don't deviate from the script, god no...

There is no relationship between the language school and the wider university (other than location), and so most campus activities were a mystery to us...even the events held in our dormitory were often a total surprise that required previously bought tickets. Also there is little to no communication between the different parts of the university, as some of us were accused of trying to avoid paying tuition fees, despite having paid upfront in september...as a result we were never given any certificate by the language school.

The extra classes mentioned in the above post were non-existant when I arrived, much to the surprise of many students as it was still advertised online.

The textbooks themselves weren't too bad, however being asked to pay full price for a photocopy of a textbook was taking the piss...

The staff in the dormitory were about as much use as a chocolate teapot...the smallest of requests was met with total reluctance and their inaccurate information meant that I personally lost some quite valuable mail as they gave me the wrong address!

The area around the university is quite enjoyable and charming, so much so that I will be moving back there this summer, however I would not recommend CUC to anyone, the place seems to have just plummeted since 2008. If your living in that area and want a school then the Beijing International Studies University is a much better option and is at a similar price -,- even the campus is much nicer

[nubcakes]

Anyone else have an opinion of this school?

[kacia-k]

I am interested in studying in china. i am interested in a school called communication university of china.i just want to knowif anyone has any idea of what the facilities are like. especially the dormitory. what are the bedrooms like? and do they have decent bathrooms in the dorm?

[ThiagoBraga]

So, I am currently living at CUC (actually in Brazil right now, but about to go back for my second semester there).

 

So, first off, the location of the university is pretty decent, but it's in no way optimal. If it was around Sihui East at most it would be much better, because it would still be line one. Every time you take the subway, you have to take Batong line and ride 2 or 3 stations to drop at Sihui or Sihui East and transfer to line 1. So if you're going to Wudaokou for example, take your earphones or something, it's gonna be a long ride with quite some transfers. Other than that, if you don't have to go to very far places like Wudaokou or west Beijing (anywhere past Tiananmen), you are at a fairly close distance. Places like Guomao, Dawanglu, Sanlitun, Chaoyang Park and most Soho buildings are just around a 30 to 40 minutes subway ride. The university neighborhood is pretty cool. If you plan to really improve your chinese, it offers great oportunities for interactions in chinese. There are plenty of shops, street vendors, restaurants, bars and internet cafes around. It is a very lively (if very chinese) place. It can get pretty hectic at times, since it's so small and crowded, but it is pretty fun to walk around and it has a good vibe. Most students walk around at night in groups, go to restaurants, do some shopping etc.

 

On the subject of chinese students. It's really up to you how much you want to connect to chinese people. I have made very good friends, some of which even came to Brazil, while I've known students that despise chinese people. There is a very big gap between foreign and chinese students though, for whatever reason. Most events are in Chinese and directed at the chinese students, so it's hard to enjoy it as a foreigner without some sort of context or background, and specially without fluency in chinese. The events they put up for "breaking the ice", such as chinese corners, are poorly advertised and attended. The best way to make chinese friends is to straight up walk around campus and talk to people. Many chinese post notes on walls looking for english language partners. So in short, it is pretty easy to make friends with the chinese students if you have 1) basic chinese (don't expect everybody, or anybody for that matter, to speak english, this is the biggest mistake you can make) 2) the will to do it 3) no cultural boundaries and bullshit, as some people tend to get racist towards chinese people out of sheer cultural difference. That is not to say, though, that the school facilitates the making of any bonds.

 

And then we have the classes. Oh my god, the classes. In short: they are boring. There is no way to cut it, it's just plain boring. It's repetitive, never gets any interesting and it's always the same. There are 6 levels right now. The only difference between them is the amount of words and grammar per lesson, the method is the same all the way through the first to the most advanced levels. It's reptetition, repetition and repetition. It is the chineses educational model, they go at a "one size fits all" progression and speed. If you get left behind, the teachers are kind enough to help you in your difficulties, but they mostly follow a strict model. The biggest hardship most people have is the hanzi writing, it goes too fast (for most westerners, anyway). There is a lot of home studying and homework as well. As the levels progress, so does the necessity of previewing the lessons before the classes. If you didn't prepare the class lesson - and you are already lagging behind a bit - don't even bother going to class and step up your game, study at home what you left behind.

 

FInally, the price: as of 2014, the semester costs 8000 RMB, being 16000 RMB for a year of studies. The dormitories range from 1150 to 3000 and more. There are two dormitories, one is just called 'building 37', which is the 'new one'. Communal bathrooms and kitchens, pretty decent rooms (most are two beds, so be expecting for a roomate, unless you want to pay more for a single room). The problem with this dorm are the rules. They close visits at 22:30, and everyone who goes inside must leave ID (they are usually picky about that, so dropping a gym card won't fly. It's gotta be student ID or passport). The other dorm is called 'International center' (guojiao), and even though it is a bit more rusty in conditions, you get bathroom in the room and the rooms are quite spacious if you rent the balcony ones. The rules are also a bit more loose, it's open 24/7 for visitation and you can drop whatever you want as ID. I generally got the vibe that the fuwuyuan at guojiao were much more chilled out than the ones at building 37. 

[Kartini Pesiwarissa]

Say Hello From Indonesia,

 

My name is Kartini and i have a plan to continue my master degree in Communication University of China through Chinese Government Scholarship (CGS). I have seen the website but i couldn't find any informations about the professor profiles and anything which explained me more about their graduate course listing, so i just tried to use google translate and it's not good so far   

Is there anyone here who go through CGS also ? if Yes and how was it ? Can you guys share more about your course ? I am thinking about my studyplan now and i need an information about how to make a better studyplan, especially about public relations or advertising studies. 

Thanks

[Concer311]

Im doing my masters now in international journalism at the CUC. Well first take a look at the website:http://sie.cuc.edu.cn/English.php and there you have a rubric called "enrollment information" where you can download all the brochures that they have. Only one thing - what they write there and the reality - these are two different things so if you had any precise questions  please let me know so i will try to help you. 

[Kartini Pesiwarissa]

Hey Concer,

Thank you very much for your help. I actually have been reading those kind of informations since one month back and i was thinking about applying to Communication, Advertising or Public Opinion major. I am confuse so far about those majors, because it's quite similar to my previous study. I was studying at communication department, diciplines in Public Relations. I concern a lot in politics issue and my thesis will be more about politics and public opinion in social media. So which major should i choose ? I was trying to use google translate in the rubric of called "Program Introducution" and read about Major Introduction for Master Program. But it doesn't help me a lot.

I was thinking to look after the professor's research to get to know any closer about the major, but there's nothing about professor's profile and their research. So it annoys me sometimes because all i know is this is a good university for "communication and media studies" so i was expecting to get more informations on their website.

Anw, How did you get through the University ? Also through chinese government scholarship ? If yes, how was it ? I really wanna know about your experience

[lfyin]

Hi there,

 

I'm a 25 year old Australian born Chinese girl, so English is my first language. I am hoping to get a Chinese government scholarship, primarily to improve my Chinese, but i am also interested in journalism and reporting in the long term (my background is in media and communications).

I was wondering whether going to a Uni like this would help me get media work (maybe at a TV station) in China? I already have a media undergraduate degree though, and am currently working in communications in the Australian government. I can't decide whether just doing maybe a one year language/culture program would be more appropriate, or whether i should study something more targeted.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice.

 

L

[roddy]

As you already have the degree and experience, I'd suggest doing a year of language study at a university that's likely to be good for networking (this one or maybe Beijing Film Academy?). Maybe an English-taught Masters, IF you can find one you're confident will be good - many of these are new and unproven. Presumably you don't have the Chinese for a Chinese-taught course. 

[lfyin]

Thanks again Roddy. I did a bit of research on both schools on their websites, its always hard to tell what is actually the case until you get there though! (had the same issue when I went to California to study).
Does anyone know, generally speaking, popular and high quality 1 year (or a bit more) language programs offered by Universities? I haven't decided which city yet, so I am open to suggestions. Looking for a good balance between a great program, active campus life, central to the city, and good networking opportunities.

 

Thanks

[roddy]

There's not much chance getting that many answers in a topic specific to one university, I'm afraid. Maybe have a read of this then start a new topic asking for advice, being as specific as you can about what you're looking for. 

[lfyin]

thanks Roddy, how do you start a new topic? I know i'm probably being noob but I tried to have a look and couldn't find it :/

[roddy]

"Start New Topic" button, right hand side, top of forum listings (and below subforums if there are subforums). EG, here, then look below the (far too many) subforum listings. 

[Xiaowei M]

@ lfyin

 

I learnt Chinese language at Communication University of China as Confucius Institute Scholarship. My profession is the law, but because there were journalists from my country in master studies and we became good friends, I spent a lot of time with them and their classmates and learnt a lot about the university. The program of media and journalism is very good. I would suggest you to apply for master program in English language. It depends on the program and student`s Chinese language proficiency, but there might be an option to learn Chinese as an elective course. My friends have learnt Chinese language for one semester. Because they didn`t have any knowledge of Chinese, it was difficult for them. But it was interesting. Once when you are enrolled in the university as a postgraduate student, you can also pay to take some lessons of Chinese language. Chinese language classes are from Monday to Friday 8-12. There is also Chinese Corner for language exchange. The campus is beautiful. The accomodation for postgraduate students is excellent. The accomodation for Chinese language students is also very good, but for the postgraduate students is much better.   

[katecheng]

Is there anybody who's getting master's in CUC? This year I applied for scholarship to study 广播电视传播学, now waiting for results. 
So just want to know what to expect if I get a chance to study there.
Thanks!